Closure applying machine



April 23, 1940. w, NEwEY 2,198,225

CLOSURE APPLYING MACHINE Filed May 13, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR 9. M Qyntm ATTORNEY April 23, 1940. w. H. NEwEY 2.198.225

CLOSURE APPLYING MACHINE Filed May 15, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 NVENTOR 6 W M IA-hit ATTORNEY Patented A r. 23, 1940 um-m STATES (mosmm APPLYING momma William H. Newer. Hingham, Mala, aslignor to Pneumaticscaie Corporation, limited, Quincy,

Massachusetts Mama, a corporation of Application May 13,1938, Serial No. 287,725

' 7 Claims. (01. 2:04am

I This invention relates to a closure applying machine. v

The object of theinvention is to provide a novel and improved closure applying machine in which provision is made for detecting imperfect closures to prevent the application thereof to containers.

A further and more specific object of the invention is to provide a novel and improved closure applying machine in which provision is made for detecting the absence of the insulating sealing disks within the closures and for preventing the application of such defective closures to the containers during the operation of the machine. a

- With these objects in view and such others as may hereinafter appear, the invention consists in the closure applying machine and in the various structures, arrangements and combinations a of-parts hereinafter described and particularly defined in the claims at the end of this specification.

In the drawings illustrating the preferred em-' bodiment of the invention, Fig. 1 is a plan view of. a closure applying machine embodying the present invention; Fig. 2 is a longitudinal cross.

sectional view of a portion of the cap feeding chute shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the closure detecting and rejecting mechanism, partly in cross-section, and Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the mechanism shown in Fig. 3, the section being taken on the line 4-4 the seal on the top or mouth of the container ,when the closure is applied thereto.

Referring now to the drawings, the 'diiferent features of the invention are illustrated as embodied in a closure applying machine having provision for automatically feeding the closures to be applied and except as to such details as are hereinafter pointed out, the illustrated closure handling apparatus and closure applying machine may comprise any of the usual forms of such apparatus and machines now upon the 1 market. Reference is made to the patent to f Arthur Clarence Everett, No; 2,082,048, dated June 1, 1937, as disclosing-the details of construction and. mode of operation ofsuch prior art closure handling and applyin machines. In the operation of the prior art closure handling and applying machines, as illustrated in 5 the Everett patent above referred to, a'bulk supply of the closures are storedin' a hopper from which they are individually withdrawn and deposited right side up in a guide chute. As is generally known, suchguide chutes are. provided 10 with mechanism for-releasing one closure at a time, in timed relation to the; operation of the closure applying mechanism, and mechanism is provided for transferring each closure from the" end of the chute to a position to be receivedby 18 I a revoluble closure applying chuck. Inasmuch as many portions of the closure handling and applying machine of themselves constitute no part of the present invention, it has been deemed suflicient to illustrate onlysuch portions of the in closure applying machine as will enable the present invention to be understood.

As-herein illustrated, the closures comprising metal caps I0 provided with sealing inserts 12 are deposited in a guide chute indicated generally at H. The guide chute is mounted upon a su porting member l8 one end of which is attached to the frame of the closure feeding hopper, not 7 shown. The lower end of the supporting member I6 is suspended from an arm 18 secured to 3 the top of a vertical shaft 20 forming part of the closure applying mechanism. The closures are guided in their movement down the chute. l4 between rails 22, 24 and, provision is made for adjusting the rails to'suit the diameter of the closures by mechanismincluding threaded rods 26, 28 having left and right hand threads; The rods 26, 28 are provided with sprockets 30', 32 connected by a chain 34 and adjustment of the rails is effected by turning a hand wheel 36 fixed upon the outer end of the rod 28.

The chute is also provided with a top guide rail 38 positioned centrally over'ithe top of the closures. The rail 38 is-supported by brackets 48, 42 mounted upon the memberlli and as herein shown, the top rail is capableof vertical adjus'tment for dilferent heights of closures by raising or lowering the pins 44, 46 and by tightening the set screws at the preferred position of adjustment. v 5

' Provision is made in the illustrated machine for releasing one closure at a time from the end of the chute'in timed relationto the operations of the applyingmechanism, indicated generally at 58 in Fig. 1. As hereinshown, the releasing 5 2 greases mechanism comprises a hooked finger l2 arrange to be extended upwardly within the endmost p of the line to hold the closures from sliding out of the chute and provision Is made 5 for lowering the finger in order to release the endmost closure. The finger .52 is adiustably secured to a link 64 which is mounted for movement such that the finger will move with substantially a straight line motion. As herein illustrated the link is plvotally supported at its ends by arms 56; 58 of bell crank levers III, 62. The second arms of levers 82, 82 are'pivotally connected togetherby a connecting rod 64. In order to rock the mechanism the shaft upon which 15 the bell crank 82 is secured, is provided with a bevel gear 68 which meshes with a bevel gear 10 fast on one end of a rocker shaft 12 mounted in a bracket 14 supported by the member It. The other end of the rocker shaft -12 is provided with go a lever 15 which is connected to a lever 18 of the closure applying mechanism by a connecting rod 18. The lever 13 is arranged to be rocked by a cam. cooperating with a roller 82 carried by a lever 84.- o In the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the closure apply machine is provided with four applying heads or chucks indicated generally at so that for each revolution of the: cona to 1 through a train of gears including cooperating gears 94, and cooperating gears 96, 91. The cam 80, being provided withtwo lobes, thus causes four closures to be released at each revolution of the closure applying mechanism.

the closure applying chucks while the latter are revolving is fully illustrated and described in the Everett Patent No. 2,082,048, above referred to a and is herein indicated generally by transferring arms IIII mounted upon vertical rods I02 carried by a revoluble portion of the closure. applying mechanism. The arms I are arranged to be rocked outwardly to remove a closure from the 50 end of the chute by a stationary cam I04. with which the rollers I, carried by the arms I08, cooperate during the revoluble movement of the latter. The low portion vI III of the cam I24 permits the transferring arms to' swing inwardly into alignment with the closure applying chucks to permit the latter to receive the closures.

In accordance with the present invention, provision is made for detecting the closures from which the sealing disks I2 are missing and for rejecting such closures from the feeding chute in order to prevent a defective closure from being applied to a container. As herein illustrated the detecting and rejecting device indicated. generally at I22 includes a contact finger I22 arranged to be inserted within the closure IIlin order to detect the presence or absence of a sealing disk in the closure, and, a pusher plate I24, which is rendered operative to reject the closure in the event that the sealing disk is missing therefrom. The contact finger I22 comprises. part of an electrical circuit which is closed when the contact finger touches the metal closure III thus releasing the mechanismfor rejecting the closure. Normally, when the contact finger I22 engages the insulating cork or paper insert I2,

The mechanism for transferring the closures from the end of the feeding chute to the jawsof' the circuit remains open and the closure is permitted to pass.

Referring now to Figs. 3 and 4, the contact finger I22 is yieldably mounted in an insulating member I22 which is secured to one arm I22 of 6 a bell crank I25. The bell crank I2! is pivotally mounted upon a stud I22 fast in a bracket Ill extending from one of the closure supporting rails I82. In order to permit the contact finger to yield when it engages the inside of the clown, a l0 coiled spring I24 is disposed between a shoulder I28 and the insulating member I22 which normally tends to urge the contact finger upwardly. The contact finger is limited in its upward movement by a collar I which bears against the 18 member I 22 as illustrated.

Provision is made for rocking the bell crank I2I in timed relation tothe closure applying mechanism in order that the contact-finger will be inserted within each closure as it is advanced along the feed chute. As herein shown the second arm I21 of the bell crank is connected to one arm I42 of a two armed lever by a connecting rod I42. The second arm I44 carries a roller I45 which co- 1 operates with a four-lobed cam I42 fast upon the 1' top of a vertical shaft I" forming part of the driving mechanism of the closure applying ma- I chine. It will be observed that the shaft III is driven through the cooperating gears 24, 2" at a ratio of '1 to 1 so that the four lobes provided t upon the cam I42 operate to rock the contact finger I22 in timed relation to the removal of the closures from the end of the feeding chute.

The pusher or rejecting plate I24 is fixed upon the end of a rod I52 which is pivotally connected to a lever Il4 loosely mounted upon a' stud I58 carried in a bracket I" supported from the member I6. The rod I52 isguided in a bearing member I mounted upon a bridge plate IiI extending across the lower closure chute rails I22, I22. The rejecting plate I24 is arranged to be" reciprocated through connections from the I21 of the bell crank I25 including a connecting rod I82. As herein shown a yieldable connection I64 is provided upon one end of the rod I22 which 4 is adapted to receive a swiveledmember in secured to the lever Ill. The swiveled member I" is slidingly received in an opening I in the yieldable connection and the member I is urged forwardly in the opening by a spring I'll.

tending from the member I6 and is arranged to go act as an armature for an electro-magnet Ill supported on the bracket I16 directly above the latch. The electro-magnet I2Ii is adapted to be energized when a closure without an insert is detected which operates to raise the latch member a;

m and permit the pusher plateto reject the defective closure. A stop pin- I82 extending from the bracket I16 serves to maintain the latch in position to be raised by the hook I14 and to be engaged thereby when the pusher plate is rocked'gb outwardly.

The electrical circuit for energizing the electromagnet I, as shown in Fig. 4 includes the leads I24, I22 one of which I24 is connected directly to the contact finger I22. The other lead is conn nected to the electro-magnet m and from the sures as are not provided with a sealing electro-magnet to a part of the machine frame as at I33. The circuit is closed when the contact finger engages the metallic portion'of the closure. Should the contact finger strike the insulating material comprising the insert I2, the electromagnet will not be energized and the pusher remains in its locked position.

From the description thus far it will be observed that the closures ride down the chute on the rails I32, I33 by gravity and are advanced each time a closure is released from the end of the chute. The bridge plate I3I extending across the rails I32, I33 is set fiush with the topof the rails and serves to form a greater conducting area than would normally be obtained-if the closure were supported upon the rails alone. An opening I33 is provided in the bridge plate to permit the contact finger to pass through. In the operation of the machine it will be observed that when the contact finger is rocked upwardly the connection I34 operates to positively rock the rejecting plate outwardly. However, when the contact finger is rocked downwardly, ifthe pusher plate is in its latched position, the spring I13 is contractedand the arm vI34 remains in its locked position.

In the operation of the device, when the contact finger engages the metallic portion of the closure, the' electro-magnet is energized and the latch member is raised. As the arm I23 is lowered, the spring I34 holds the contact member up against the inside of the closure in order to maintain the contact until the pusher has started to come forward so that the hook I14 may pass beyond the reach of the latch member I12 when the contact is broken.v As illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4,.the defective closures are pushed out of the chute through a gate I32 which is arranged to swing outwardly when engaged by a closure. The gate is hinged on a pin I34 extending between bearing members I33 mounted upon the side rail 22. As shown in Fig. 3, the guide rail 22 is cut out at the point where the gate is post and serves as a guide for the closures. Likewise, the guide rail 24 is cut out forthe pusher plate I24 and the front edge of the pusher serves as a guide for the closureswhen the pusher is in its retracted position. The side edge I33 of the pusher serves to .hold back the'line of closures in the chute while one is being rejected. The yeldable connection I34 in addition to permitting the pusher toremain in its locked position when a normal closure is detected also serves as a safeguard against damaging the parts, should the pusher encounter any undue resistance during its forward motion.

For convenience of description and as used throughout the claims hereof, the term defective closure is intended to define closures rendered defective by the absence of the insulating sealing disk I2.

While the preferred embodiment of the invention has been hereinillustrated and described,

I it will be understood that the invention may be embodied in other forms within the scope of the following claims.

Having thus described the invention, what is Claimed isi 1. A closure applying machine having, in combination, closure applying mechanism, closure feeding mechanism adapted to feed metal closures having, non-conductible sealing inserts,

means for detecting the presenceor absence of a sealing'insert, and means for rejecting such clo- .means, including a-contact member disposedbecomprising a pusher plate operatively connected "to said closure applylngmechanism to operate in able contact finger insertible into said closures and adaptedto close said circuit to said electromagnet when the contact finger engages the metallic portion of the closure, said movable contact finger being operatively connectedto said pusher plate and arranged so that the pusher plate will not operate untilthe contact finger has been withdrawn.

2. A closure applying machine having, in com- 7 bination, closure applying mechanism, closure feeding mechanism adaptedto feed metal 010- 1 sures having non-conductible sealing inserts, said closure feeding mechanism comprising an inclined guideway through which the closures are fed right side up and in succession, means for releasing successive closures from said guideway, a movable contact finger disposed beneath said guideway and insertible into said closures for detecting the presence or absence of said sealing inserts in the closures, and means responsive to said detecting means'for ejecting from the guideway those closures from which a. sealing insert is absent. I

' 3. 'A closure applying machine, in combination,

closure applying mechanism, closure feeding mechanism arranged to feed closuresin an upright position and electrically operated means for detecting the absence of an insulating sealing disk from a closure fed by the closure feeding means including a contact member disposed beneath the closures being fed and insertible into the interior of said closure and adapted upon detection of the absence of a sealing disk therefrom to electrically contact the metallic closure, and means rendered operative by said electrically operated detectingmeans for preventingthe' application of such a defective closure to a container.

4. A closure applying machine, in combination,

closure applying mechanism, closure feeding mechanism arranged to feed closures in an upright position and electrically operated means'for detecting the absence of an insulatingsealing disk from a closure fed by the closure feeding neath the closures being fed and insertible intothe interior of said closure and adapted upon detection of the absence of a sealing disk therefrom to electrically contact the metallic closure.

5. A closure applying machine having, in coma Q bination, closure applying mechanism, closure' feeding mechanism adapted to feed metal closures having non-conductible sealing inserts, said closure feeding mechanism comprising an inclined guideway through which the closures are 5 fed right side up and in succession, means for releasing successive closures from said guideway;

a movable contact finger disposed beneath said guideway and insertible into said closures for detecting the presence or absence of said scaling in-.{, I I}, serts in the closures, and means responsive to 1 said detecting means for electing from the guide- 15};

10 adapted to be closed in response to said detecting means, said detectingmeans including a mova" closure feeding mechanism comprising an inclined guideway through which theclosures are led right side up and in succession, means for releasing successive closures from said guideway.

' a movable contact iinger disposed beneath said I. :guideway and insertible into said closures for detecting the presence or absence oi said sealing inserts in the closures, and means responsive to said detecting means for ejecting from the guideway those closures from which a sealing insert is tion disposed adjacent said-detecting means and adapted to be moved outwardly when engaged by bination, closure am mechanism, closure ieeding m adapted to teed metal closures having .non-oonductible sealing inserts in an upright position, said closure feeding mechanism comprising a guideway including side rails between which said closures are led in succession and in contiguous relation, means for detecting the presence or absence oi a sealing insert, and

way as are notprovided with a sealing insert comprising a pusher plate operatively connected to said detecting means, one of said side rails being provided with a hinged portion adapted to means for rejecting such closures from the guidebe swung outwardly when engaged by a closure being ejected, said hinged portion being normalabsent. said guideway including a movable porlydisposed to guide said closures through said suideway.

' mm H. 'NEWEY. 

